Mayor Gene Sobolewski, Reeve Ed Rondeau and other local notables attended the Lakeland Co-op’s soil turning ceremony this morning.
The Co-op is building a new home centre in town which they say will triple their total staff from 25 to over 75. Construction is slated to begin next week and the finished building is going to be 25,000 square feet.
While the less than ideal economy might make some cautious about new expansion, General Manager Mario Bouvier remains confident. “We actually started in the 1980s, which as most are aware was one of the toughest times to start anything… maybe short-term but we’re long-term thinkers. We think “10 years down the road, what can we provide our members?” Short term there might be some hiccups but long-term it’s what we need to do to make this co-op a success.”
Even before any construction’s begun, this has been a long time coming. The Co-op has been looking at the site for nearly two years. They hope to be open in less than a year.